Red Rock Canyon Run Las Vegas

Red Rock Canyon Run Las Vegas

While out in Vegas for ICAST, I had the chance to get out for a little trail run through Red Rock Canyon.  For those that don't know, Red Rock Canyon is an awesome little area just outside of Las Vegas.  Its within a thirty minute drive of the strip, and feels as if you are in a totally different world than the hustle and bustle of Vegas. 
Driving up to the Red Rock Canyon recreation area, you get a great view of what I think is the Mt. Charleston range.

 

Once you get in the gates of the park, it is a one way 13 mile drive.  When running Red Rock, you can run the full loop for a good Half Marathon run.  Not totally advisable in July, but a great run none the less.
As you drive along you'll see different parking areas.  We stopped at the third parking area and jumped on the trail from there. 
As soon as you step foot on the trail, you enter a different world.  Towering cliffs, red rocks, and a great run. Not totally technical, but slightly difficult.  Most of the trail is a hard packed dirt to light gravel.  The path itself is fairly narrow and a single running trail. 

As you near the bottom of the canyon, you come across the dry river bed.  This is a small rock/pebble bed that is pretty easy to run on.  For the most part, the trail runs along the riverbed, but in some instances you actually cross the bed or run on it.

 

As you run along you see towering cliffs with climbers dangling perilously from their ropes as well as very large boulders.

This boulder here was a good 30 plus feet tall.  Probably closer to 40.  Either way, if you need a quick shade break, this was a nice spot.  Beware, other critters are probably hiding there too!

Once you do make it down to the river bed, you can run on the path, or on the riverbed.  I did a little of both.  Here is a shot of the riverbed and the running you can do along it.

Along the riverbed you can see more beautiful sites and interesting rock formations and features.
Here is a big boulder overhand that you run along for a good 50 yards.

At some points the riverbed turns into a bed of stone.  I'm not sure what kind of stone it is, but it makes for a nice had surface to run on.  Here you can see the gravel turning into the harder stone surface.

 

Here is a better look at the hard surface.

The day we chose to run Red Rock, it was a cool 103 degrees up at the car.  Down in the canyon, it was probably a couple degrees warmer.  But as they say, its a dry heat!
We went through a lot of water on that run, but we all made it out unscathed.

Here is a quick shot of me standing along the trail.

Red Rock Canyon is a great little run if you have a few extra hours while in Vegas.  Its surprisingly close to the strip, but miles away from the craziness.  We've done this run in the winter and its much more comfortable and cooler.  This day we only knocked out about 4 miles, but it was hot, and we all wanted to survive to make it back to the pool or casino. 

For more info and directions, you can check out www.redrock.org

Happy Running!
Dave

#redrock #running #lasvegas #vegan #ICAST